This site really sums up what food literacy is and how we can spread this knowledge about food to other people. Food literacy, consisting of a person’s knowledge in food, cooking, and the media, is very important in order for families to stay healthy. If we teach the youth of our country how to find the healthiest, most ripe foods, and how to prepare them, these children will grow up knowing how to live a healthy lifestyle and can pass on this knowledge to future generations. So, if you want to read up on food literacy, or help support The Food Literacy Project, check out this website!
Choose Healthy Foods
I found this chart to be very accurate! Everyone needs this posted in their house to teach their kids what foods must be eaten in moderation
Online Ad Spending
Here’s a graph that shows that our country is only going to continue to spend more and more money on advertising.
When did this start?
Beginning in the 1880’s, food advertisements began appearing as a response to changes in the business world. By 1927, advertisements were spread through the radio and starting in the 1950’s, the television became a prime location for ads.
In 1963, Ronald McDonald made his first TV appearance in a low-budget McDonald’s commercial. In 2011, McDonald’s spent 25,000 dollars on advertising, which just proves the point that advertising is very important in influencing consumers. In 2012, 36 companies in the U.S. spent over 1 billion dollars on advertising.
Check out this website to see some of the first McDonald’s commercials: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2001089/Meet-Ronald-McDonald-1963-TV-debut.html
Here’s another recipe that looks super easy to make and also looks super delicious! I’m gonna have to try it soon!
Beef Stir-Fry with Avocado Salad
Recipe developed by Anna Berman
Makes: 4 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Ingredients:
12 ounces beef tenderloin, cut into thin strips
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 poblano, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 avocado, diced
1/4 cup Cojita cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup cilantro plus more for garnish, chopped
Corn tortillas (optional)
Directions:
1. In a bowl, combine beef, 2 tablespoons lime juice, and 1 tablespoon chili powder; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, bell pepper, and poblano and saute 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add beef and marinade to vegetables and cook 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.
4. In another bowl, combine beans, avocado, cheese, 1/4 cup cilantro, and remaining lime juice and chili powder.
5. Garnish beef and vegetables with remaining cilantro. Serve with avocado salad and warmed tortillas if desired.
Nutrition facts per serving: 436 calories, 28g protein, 30g carbohydrate, 26g fat (7g saturated), 10g fiber
Dinnertime!
Personally, I feel that dinnertime is family time. When I asked my mom about her thoughts on this subject, she agreed. She claimed that, “dinner time is a time to come together and talk about the day”. This is a view that was commonly held for a long time. Dinner was the one time of the day when everyone’s schedules matched up. Eating a home-cooked meal was also a primary aspect of this time. Previously, mothers would often stay home and put a lot of effort into dinners, often using special family recipes. Now, mothers often don’t have the time to spend preparing meals. Home-cooked meals also tend to be healthier because mother’s decide what foods to put into the meals. If parents have food literacy, they can easily prepare healthy meals.
So True! Eating healthy is a major part of taking care of your body, so be sure you are being smart about what you eat!
Cereal Companies Use Misleading Messages To Advertise to Children
This video is very interesting, describing the basic tactics advertisement companies use on kids compared to those used on adults.
Food Media also changes social norms
Food media has altered the different things that society considers socially acceptable when it comes to food. Food has recently lost its role as something to sustain us, and has become just something to do to keep busy or something to satisfy a want or desire. People eat food without really thinking about if they’re hungry or not. We have been convinced that there are specific times of the day we must eat, so we do, whether we are actually hungry or not. Society has influenced the way we eat by convincing us that eating is a social time, so when we go out we tend to eat more. Advertisement companies just build off of these societal influences because they are out to get their profits. They’re not concerned about educating about food and food awareness because advertising is based primarily on money. Companies will do whatever they must, whether it’s the morally right choice or not, in order to get the most money as possible. A lot of foods that are unhealthy are directed towards children and younger people so that they can convince they’re parents to buy it.
wait a minute…what is classical conditioning?
As promised, I am making this post solely to enlighten you on classical conditioning and what exactly it does. Classical conditioning was first discovered by Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist. Classical conditioning involves placing a neutral signal before a naturally occurring reflex. In Pavlov’s classic experiment with dogs, the neutral signal was the sound of a tone and the naturally occurring reflex was the dog salivating for the food. By associating the neutral stimulus with the environmental stimulus (the presentation of food), the sound of the tone alone could produce the salivation. For more examples, check out Kendra Cherry’s article at http://psychology.about.com/od/behavioralpsychology/a/classcond.htm.
When food advertisement companies use this, they are able to associate a food/beverage product with a happy feeling. So, when you see this product outside of the advertisement, you feel happy and you want to buy and consume it. This is a really good method for advertisement companies to use because the consumer doesn’t even realize it’s occurring.
What has happened to Food Literacy? 